Privacy Policy

Overview

We take the protection of your personal data seriously. NovaNota is designed as a local-first application: your sheet music, annotations and recordings remain on your device by default. We do not store your content permanently: only when you use notation recognition or BandConnect are files kept briefly (24 hours at most) on our server in Germany.

This privacy policy informs you about which personal data we process when you use our app and website, for what purpose and on what legal basis.

Controller

Data inside the app

Local storage

The following data is stored exclusively on your device and is not transmitted to us:

• Your imported PDF and MusicXML files
• Annotations you create with Apple Pencil or your finger
• Imported and self-recorded backing tracks
• Your own collections, setlists and custom order
• Practice statistics used to compute practice suggestions

Anonymous diagnostics (optional)

If you have enabled “Share with App Developers” in your device settings under Privacy & Security → Analytics & Improvements, Apple provides us with anonymous crash and performance reports. This data contains no personal information and is used solely to improve stability. The app itself has no separate feature for this; you decide in your device settings.

No app tracking

There is no tracking inside the app. We use no analytics SDKs, no advertising identifiers and no cross-device user tracking. Your in-app usage behaviour is not recorded, not analyzed and not shared with third parties.

BandConnect

When you create a BandConnect code, the selected document is uploaded to a temporary server for a maximum of 24 hours. Access is only possible via the QR code or link you generate. No account is needed; no data about the recipients is stored.

After 24 hours the file is automatically and irrevocably deleted. You can also end the share manually at any time before that.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR (performance of contract — providing the chosen app function).

PDF & image recognition (MXL conversion)

NovaNota offers an optional automatic notation-recognition feature: you can convert PDF or image files (e.g. scanned sheet music) into the MusicXML format (MXL). Recognition is performed using the open-source software Audiveris (supplemented by oemer), which runs on a server operated by novanota.cloud.

How processing works

1. The file you select is transmitted to the novanota.cloud server in encrypted form for the duration of the conversion.
2. Audiveris analyzes the file and generates an MXL file from it.
3. The finished MXL file is transmitted back to your device and stored there.
4. Both the uploaded source file and the generated MXL file are automatically and irrevocably deleted from the server after no more than 24 hours.

Data processed

• The contents of the PDF or image file you upload
• Your IP address (only in the server log, see Website & server logs, and to prevent mass access)

No user account is required. Files are processed solely for the purpose of conversion and are not used, analyzed or passed on for any other purpose.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR (performance of contract — providing the chosen app function).

Calendar (from version 1.10)

Events, calendars and reminders you create in NovaNota are stored on your device. If you have chosen a cloud storage (iCloud, Google Drive or NextCloud/WebDAV), the app also saves a file with your events there so they stay the same on all your devices. We (h4M) receive none of this; there is no account and no NovaNota server for the calendar.

Reminders are notifications scheduled by the app on your device (local notifications). They do not go through a push server run by us or anyone else. The app asks for permission only when you set a reminder; you can withdraw it at any time in your device settings.

Subscribing to calendars: If you enter the address of an internet calendar (e.g. from your choir, your band, NextCloud, iCloud or Google), your device downloads it directly from that address – when you subscribe, then at most once an hour and whenever you refresh. The provider of that address receives the usual connection data (IP address, time, device type/app identifier). That provider is responsible for this request and its privacy policy applies; we are not involved.

Sharing calendars: When you share a calendar or event, the app creates a file (.ics) that you pass on yourself (e.g. via AirDrop, Messages or email). It contains the events with everything you entered (e.g. location, meeting time, dress code, notes). Only share other people's data if they agree.

Opening a location in Maps: If you tap “Open in Maps” on an event, the app passes the location you entered to Apple Maps. Apple's privacy policy applies.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (providing a feature you requested).

YouTube backing tracks

You can add a YouTube link to a piece as a backing track. Only when you open such a track does the app load the player in privacy-enhanced mode from youtube-nocookie.com. Your IP address, device and browser information and the requested video are then transmitted to YouTube (Google Ireland Ltd., Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland); a transfer to the USA is possible. Google is certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework.

The app opens the player in a view without persistent storage – cookies and similar data are deleted when you close it. Unless you open a YouTube track, no connection to YouTube is made. See Google's privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (providing the feature you selected).

Sounds (download)

You can download additional sounds (sound banks) for playback from novanota.cloud within the app. Only the technically required data is processed (IP address, time, requested file; see Website & server logs). No account is required and none of your content is transmitted.

Purchases

In-app purchases (e.g. NovaNota Pro) are handled exclusively by Apple through the App Store. We do not receive any payment or account data; the app verifies the purchase on your device only. Apple is responsible – see apple.com/legal/privacy.

Cloud sync (iCloud, Google Drive, NextCloud)

NovaNota offers optional synchronization of your documents and annotations between your devices. You decide whether and via which service syncing happens — the options are Apple iCloud, Google Drive and NextCloud. Without your activation, no data leaves your device.

During synchronization, your selected content (PDF and MusicXML files, annotations, collections and settings) is stored in the storage of the provider you choose. The data resides in your personal account with the respective service; we ourselves have no access to this data and keep no copy of our own.

iCloud

Processing takes place exclusively in your personal iCloud container. Apple Inc. is the controller — see Apple's privacy policy: apple.com/legal/privacy.

Google Drive

If you choose Google Drive as the sync target, your data is stored in your personal Google account. NovaNota only accesses the folder designated for the app. You sign in on Google's own sign-in page; the access authorization is stored only on your device and is not sent to us. Google Ireland Ltd. is the controller — see Google's privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy.

NextCloud

When syncing via NextCloud, your data is stored on the NextCloud server you specify. The respective operator is responsible for that server — for self-hosted instances that is you or your provider. NovaNota merely establishes the connection using the credentials you enter; these are stored exclusively locally on your device and are not transmitted to us.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (b) GDPR (performance of contract — providing the chosen app function).

Website & server logs

Whenever you visit novanota.cloud, our hosting provider automatically collects technically necessary data:

• IP address (anonymized after 7 days)
• Date and time of access
• Requested URL and HTTP status code
• Browser and operating system used
• Referrer URL

This data is technically necessary to deliver the website. It is not combined with other data sources and is deleted after 30 days.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR (legitimate interest in stable website operation).

Web analytics (Matomo)

To analyze website usage statistically we use Matomo — open-source analytics software that we host ourselves. No data is shared with third parties.

Matomo is deliberately run in a data-minimizing configuration:

• Cookieless operation — no tracking cookies are set.
• IP anonymization — your IP address is truncated before it is stored and cannot be attributed to a person.
• Respect for “Do Not Track” — if that setting is enabled in your browser, no measurement takes place.
• There is no cross-device tracking and no profiling.

Only aggregated metrics are collected, such as pages visited, approximate region (based on the anonymized IP), browser type and time on page — solely to improve the website.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR (legitimate interest in data-minimizing web analytics). Due to the anonymized, cookieless processing, no consent is required.

Objection (opt-out): You can object to the collection at any time here:

Cookies

The novanota.cloud website uses no tracking cookies and no advertising. Web analytics with Matomo run cookieless (see above). Only a technical local-storage entry saves your theme preference (light/dark) and language preference locally in your browser.

Getting in touch

If you contact us by email, the information you submit (email address, name, content of the message) is processed and stored to handle your request. We do not share this data without your consent. The data is deleted as soon as the request has been completed and no statutory retention obligations prevent deletion.

Legal basis: Art. 6 (1) (b) or Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR.

Your rights

Under the GDPR you have the following rights:

• Access to the data we process about you (Art. 15)
• Rectification of inaccurate data (Art. 16)
• Erasure of your data (Art. 17)
• Restriction of processing (Art. 18)
• Data portability (Art. 20)
• Objection to processing (Art. 21)
• Complaint to a supervisory authority (Art. 77)

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at mail@hoch4Medien.de.

Changes to this policy

We reserve the right to adjust this privacy policy so that it always meets the current legal requirements or reflects changes to our services. The latest version is always available on this page.